But then it got worse.
“Oh.” Will actually blushed. Blushed!Jesus. They had to get out of Mayberry before Will turned straightagain. Failing that, they had to go somewhere and fuck beforeTaylor’s head exploded. Either head. Both heads. Take your pick. Hewas about as frustrated as he’d ever been in his adult life.
And dismayed that it seemed to be all hisproblem.
They reached the Land Cruiser and climbedinside. Will had still not said anything since that startled,Oh.
Taylor said, trying to sound calm andreasonable, but knowing he was failing miserably, “Brandt, Jesus.Do I have to beg? Can we please go somewhere and fuck?”
Will looked at him in surprise. “Hell yeah,we’re going somewhere,” he assured Taylor. “I’m just trying tothink if there’s a nicer place to take you.”
Taylor started to laugh, largely withrelief. For one alarming moment he’d wondered. “Not worried aboutthe décor, Brandt. Seriously. Just find us some place where no oneyou knew from the good old days is going to walk in on us.”
“The Black Bear Inn it is,” Will said,turning the key in the ignition. As they pulled away from the curb,he said, “For the record, those weren’t the good old days. Thesedays with you, these are the good old days. Right now.”
Taylor wanted to make some joke, saysomething to lighten the moment, but he couldn’t. It meant a lot tohear Will say it. Especially here in this Will Brandt alternateuniverse he found himself in.
Will reached over and squeezed his thigh. Hewas smiling faintly.
* * * * *
A large faded statue of a black beardefended the driveway entrance to the Black Bear Inn. One of thestatue’s eyes had been scratched out, whether by time or teenagers,giving the bear’s expression a half-blind, baleful cast.
There were two cars in the motel parkinglot. A Forest Service green pickup and a late model silversedan.
“Here’s a scary thing,” Will said, pullingup beneath the motel archway. “I think I recognize thosevehicles.”
“That is scary.” Taylor opened thedoor and jumped out. “I’ve got this.”
There followed a brief but mildlyembarrassing business exchange at the front desk with apimple-faced youth, and then Taylor climbed back into the SUV. Heheld the plastic card key up. “This entitles us to a lovelyContinental breakfast, which I got to examine firsthand becausethis morning’s is still sitting out on the counter.”
Will shuddered.
“We’re around the back. Don’t run over anyhobos.”
“I knew this wasn’t a five-star place, but Idon’t remember it being such a dump.” Will pulled slowly around theL-shaped, one-story building. There were more cars parked behindthe motel, most of them partially concealed by the wildly overgrownmyrtlewood trees.
“I’m guessing the tourist trade is not howthis place stays in business?”
“There is no tourist trade up here.”
Will parked far beneath the boughs of theOregon-myrtle and they walked across the cracked asphalt lot to theline of discolored blue doors. A couple of rooms down, a curtaintwitched and went still.
“Here we are,” Taylor said, sliding thekey.
“Don’t remind me,” Will muttered, but hishand was a warm and welcome weight, resting in the small ofTaylor’s back.
The door opened to the scent of stalecigarette smoke, bleached linens, and Lysol. The lights were dim,but that was probably a blessing. Taylor had a vague impression offurniture made from plywood and orange-and-brown curtains andbedspreads. There was a faded square over the king-sized bed wherea framed picture had once hung. The fact that the picture hadpossibly been stolen or defaced was probably the most interestingthing about the room.
The bed offered a coin-operated massage.
“Is this where you used to bring Madonnawhen you’d come home from college?” Taylor couldn’t stop staring atthe bed. There was a wrinkle across the shiny polyester spread. Heglanced at Will.
Will made a face. “A couple of times,yeah.”
“I gotta say. I’m both depressed and weirdlyturned on by that.”
Will gave a funny laugh. Their eyes met.Will grabbed Taylor’s shirt and pulled him in for an unexpectedlydeep and hungry kiss.
He tasted like Cascade Ale and charbroiledhamburger and himself. He tasted like home. Like everything worthhaving. It just didn’t matter that they were standing in a seedy,run down motel. They could have been standing in a live volcano,for all Taylor cared. Will’s firm mouth pushed confidently,possessively onto Taylor’s, and Taylor closed his eyes and leanedinto that kiss. Until Will, kisses had not meant that much to him.Just a polite preliminary. Hors d’oeuvres before dinner. But heloved to be kissed by Will, actually longed for Will’s kisses.
Will groaned, the sound so heartfelt, soresounding that they both started to laugh. That was sweet too,trying to maintain contact as they shared that amusedunderstanding.
Will pulled away enough to say, “I don’tknow what it is about being up here, but every time I look at you Iwant to throw you on your belly and fuck the daylights out ofyou.”
Taylor snickered at the daylights out ofyou comment, but it was reassuring to hear, given that he feltthe same way. “Okay,” he said.
“Okay?” Will’s blue eyes were hopeful butalso doubtful. “It’s not my turn.”
They had always been respectful in theirtaking turns topping each other — they both liked being in control,running the show — but since striking out on their own, they werescrupulous about it. It seemed vital to their survival to preservethe balance of power between them, both inside and outside thebedroom.
“I don’t mind,” Taylor said, which wasn’texactly true and sounded lukewarm even to his own ears. He didwant, felt the need, to possess Will. Badly. But he also wanted togive Will whatever he wanted, whatever would make Will value whatthey had above anything else he’d known. So he said softly,deliberately, “I want you to, Will. I think I need it.”
Will’s eyes widened and then went dark withsomething that was a mix of excitement and passion. He made anotherof those inarticulate sounds from deep in his chest, somethingbetween a groan and a growl. “Yeah? You need it?”
Taylor nodded.
Will’s hands slid down Taylor’s back,closing on his ass, fingers digging through the denim as he snuggedTaylor’s crotch to his own. Beneath the denim, Will’s erection washuge. Or maybe that was his own because there was
